Monday, October 31, 2011

The Costume Conundrum: The Reveal!

Cooking Corner: Cake Pops

ADD PICTURES

Have you ever heard of Cake Pops?

Well then you must have been living under the internet rock for quite some time. (Well either that or you're not a food blogger nerd like me). They've been sweeping the nation, especially since Bakerella published a book: Cake Pops: Tips, Tricks, and Recipes for Over 40 Irresistable Mini Treats

I will admit, I have had my highs and lows with cake pops. My first attempts, I blindly trusted the ratios on her website and ended up with mushy, saccharine sweet blobs of goo that, yes, tasted fantastic (it's cake and frosting, how could it not?) but didn't hold up well to being put on sticks.

My second attempt was a similar failure. I got a texture that was work-with-able but my dipping techniques were sub-par and I ended up with crummy candy coating.

But my third attempt, oh my third attempt was wonderful. I watched the video that she filmed for Amazon to promote the book and I got it. It clicked. I went to work and made a whole bouquet of cake pops that I then gave to my research professor as a thank you for the help she has given me this past summer.

And now, because we all know my obsession with pumpkin, it is time.

Pumpkin Cake Pops. Pumpkin cupcakes. Cinnamon cream cheese frosting. Mush it together, dip it in candy, draw on a face and voila. you've got yummy Jack-O-Lantern treats that should probably be scared of you because their fate rests in your mouth.

The recipe appears in the Fall issue of Betty Crocker's baking magazine, the ones you see at supermarket checkouts. Bakerella posted on her blog about how excited she was to see her recipe on the cover, and then I had to go out and buy a copy.

(That's Bakerella's picture, no mine, my camera is not nearly that good)

So, in the interest of not being sued by Betty Crocker, I have not posted the recipe, but if you have a pumpkin cupcake recipe, and you know how to make Cake Pops, you are pretty much set. So let's get onto the good part: the pictures!

So, dear readers: Have you ever tried cake pops? Heard of them? Think they sound disgusting? Want to go try them right this second? Tell me in the comments!